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My name is Amelia, and for the past year I have had the honor of being the Front Desk and Volunteer Coordinator at Matthews Free Medical Clinic. Sadly, today is my last day working at the clinic as my husband and I will be moving back to Washington State this month.

I have been so blessed by my time here and my encounters with all of the wonderful people I have met. I can’t adequately express how much my time at the clinic has meant to me. I will miss all of the staff, volunteers, and patients. It is all of you that make the clinic such an incredible place.

Thank you to all of the staff and volunteers for welcoming me into the clinic family. I have felt so loved and supported by all of you, and it has been a joy to work with you. Thank you so much for all you do for the clinic and the community! Thank you for letting me be a part of it. Thank you to all of the patients for your kindness, joy, and gratitude.

Matthews Free Medical Clinic has been such a blessing to me, and I know it continues to be a huge blessing to this community. I can’t wait to come back and volunteer when I am back in town. I am so thankful for all the clinic does to provide quality health care to uninsured patients in the area.

We’d like to thank this local neighborhood group of kids who came by to volunteer at the clinic today! This is their third year volunteering. They did a supply drive for the clinic, made cards for our patients and their families, and cleaned up the clinic and park. We couldn’t be more grateful for these volunteers and others like them! It’s because of you that we can continue to provide free, quality healthcare to low income, uninsured patients in Mecklenburg and Union Counties.

“Reflections of Brantome” is a 30 x 40 framed oil painting by local artist, Prudy Weaver that is being raffled off to support Matthews Free Medical Clinic.

Tickets are $20 per ticket, and there is no limit to the number of tickets that can be purchased. This painting is worth $4,000! Tickets can be purchased now until the raffle drawing on Saturday, November 4th at the Silver Brush Art Show and Sale.

Raffle tickets can be purchased in person at Matthews Free Medical Clinic, at the Silver Brush Art Show and Sale, or online.

To purchase tickets online go to www.matthewsfmc.org/contributions, scroll to the bottom of the page, click on donate, then select how you would like to make your payment (credit card or paypal). You may purchase more than one ticket. In the area “add special instructions” type “raffle ticket” and the number of tickets you are purchasing. All your information will be entered by the Matthews Free Medical Clinic into the raffle drawing, and we will send you your raffle ticket(s).

You do not need to be present at the drawing to win.

A special thank you to the local artist, Prudy Weaver and to Dick and Eleanor Morris for donating the painting to support Matthews Free Medical Clinic!

“Reflections of Brantome” is a 30 x 40 framed oil painting by local artist, Prudy Weaver that is being raffled off to support Matthews Free Medical Clinic.

Tickets are $20 per ticket, and there is no limit to the number of tickets that can be purchased. Tickets can be purchased now until the raffle drawing on Saturday, November 4th at the Silver Brush Art Show and Sale.

Raffle tickets can be purchased in person at Matthews Free Medical Clinic, at the 9th Annual Hearts and Hands Benefit, at the Silver Brush Art Show and Sale, or online.

To purchase tickets online go to www.matthewsfmc.org/contributions, scroll to the bottom of the page, click on donate, then select how you would like to make your payment (credit card or paypal). You may purchase more than one ticket. In the area “add special instructions” type “raffle ticket” and the number of tickets you are purchasing. All your information will be entered by the Matthews Free Medical Clinic into the raffle drawing, and we will send you your raffle ticket(s).

You do not need to be present at the drawing to win.

A special thank you to the local artist, Prudy Weaver and to Dick and Eleanor Morris for donating the painting to support Matthews Free Medical Clinic!

Matthews Free Medical Clinic (MFMC) serves the uninsured and non-elderly (ages 14-64) individuals of Mecklenburg and Union Counties that have family income levels at or below 200% of the federal poverty level. As a free medical clinic, we do not receive reimbursements from private insurances, Medicare, or Medicaid, nor federal or local government funding. This means the Clinic is run 100% on donations and grants. Nearly half of our yearly revenue is raised through our two annual fundraisers: the MFMC Golf Tournament and the Hearts & Hands Benefit. With the 2017 MFMC Golf Tournament having occurred in May, we are now looking to the Hearts & Hands Benefit for the majority of our Clinic’s fundraising. On October 21st, 2017, at Myers Park Country Club, MFMC is hosting the 9th Annual Hearts & Hands Benefit: a cocktail dinner complete with silent and live auctions. All proceeds raised provide direct patient care to people in our community that would otherwise go without. Tickets are $125 per person (which includes drinks and dinner). The event is cocktail attire. The opportunity to sponsor the 2017 Hearts & Hands Benefit is also available:

Title Sponsor $5,000. Includes:

Exclusive naming rights of event program

Prominent company name and logo placement on all promotional materials associated with the event; including banners, website, mailings, event signage and all post event communications Opportunity to provide sponsor giveaway in swag bags

This summer Matthews Free Medical Clinic was blessed to have five interns, including students from the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program and Undergraduate and Graduate students from The University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Olivia and Morghan interned with the clinic through the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program (MSYEP) and are both seniors at local high schools. The goal of MSYEP is to serve as a young person’s first job experience and exposure to the world of work. All youth participate in skill-building workshops each week and have the opportunity to attend college tours, financial literacy training, and a variety of program-sponsored social events during the summer. This is a wonderful program that we have been so blessed to work with. We want to thank Bank of America for their sponsorship of this program.

Olivia and Morghan worked on several projects at the clinic throughout the summer, including planning for and helping with clinic events and fundraisers, new patient screenings, and our annual patient recertification.

Our officer manager, Melody, had this to say about Olivia and Morghan: “We were blessed with two amazing interns this year! They jumped in, willing to do both small tasks and big projects with great attitudes and attention to details. They transformed the timetable of our annual patient recertification, tirelessly helping me process the recertification documents through each step. I cannot speak highly enough about their efficiency, thoroughness, cheerful attitudes and willingness to do whatever they were asked to do. They were truly a blessing to me and the clinic this summer, and we are missing them already!”

Our three UNCC interns spent the summer working on projects within their different focuses. Becca, an undergraduate student, led a class for our patients on preventing heart disease, as well as helped with recertification and new patient screening. Robert, who is a graduate student at UNCC, spent his time at the clinic analyzing coding in our electronic medical records. Morgan, also a graduate student at UNCC, created and implemented a 5 week health and wellness educational program for our patients, and also worked on patient recertification and screening.

Of her time interning her at the clinic, Morgan said, “In addition to completing my internship goals, I created memories that will last a lifetime. It was such a joy working with the staff and patients at the clinic. Matthews Free Medical Clinic welcomed me and treated me like family from the day I walked through the doors. They will always have a special place in my heart.”

We are so grateful for all of these interns and the wonderful work they did this summer. We wish them all the best, and know they have great things ahead of them!

Matthews Free Medical Clinic is dedicated to providing health education for our patients. This summer, with the help of one of our summer interns, we were able to offer a Healthy Living educational program at the clinic.

Morgan Poole, a Graduate Intern from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, led a 5-week Summer Wellness Program, “Get Fit and Eat Healthy for Life, Not Just for the Summer.” The three main objectives of the course were a Gardening Project, a Physical Activity component, and a Nutrition Education component. Patients were given homework throughout the program and were encouraged to come up with a health goal they would like to fulfill and continue working on through the program and beyond. The overall goal for the program was for patients to take control of their health and to make necessary changes to improve their overall wellness. Patients now have a better understanding of controlling portion sizes, how to prepare healthier meals, the importance of eating more fruits and vegetables, the benefits of eating at home versus eating out, planning before grocery shopping, how to increase their physical activity daily, and many more topics! They also planted an herb and vegetable garden at the clinic that they will tend and harvest to help with their healthy eating plan. One patient was even inspired to plant her own vegetable garden at home!

Here is what some of our patients had to say about the program:

“It gave me the kick start I needed to get back on track with daily exercise and healthy eating.”

“It helped me to improve my goals and expectations; and the recipes, handouts, instructions, and class participation was a big step toward a healthier me.”

“This program has proven to me that I am capable of setting goals and reaching and maintaining them. Now I will continue to do something I never did before… garden. I am proud of my little plants!”

This handouts was given out during Week 1’s Lesson: “Let Food Be Your Medicine” encouraging patients to buy fresh produce in season.

Thank you Elevation Church and all of the volunteers who participated in another great Love Week!

This Love Week over 150 volunteers came to serve at Matthews Free Medical Clinic for a total of over 400 hours!

These volunteers served in a number of ways: repainting our offices and exam rooms, planting a garden to provide our patients with fresh herbs and vegetables to take home, putting together activity kits for our patients’ children, setting up a carnival in partnership with the Charlotte Independence to benefit The Local Family Network, and more!

Thank you so much to Elevation Church and all of the volunteers who served here at the clinic. All of your hard work over hundreds of hours helps the clinic to better provide free, quality health care to low income, uninsured patients in Mecklenburg and Union Counties.

Nam has been volunteering at Matthews Free Medical Clinic for over two years. He has volunteered almost every Monday afternoon in those two years. He always comes in full of positivity and joy, and gets right to work, helping with everything from pulling charts for the week, helping at the front desk, restocking paper in the printer, or jumping into any request we had for him.

When we asked Nam about how he got involved with the clinic and his favorite thing about volunteering, he said, “I have always had the desire to help others. Specifically, I wanted to give back to our community; a place that helped shape me into who I am today. I made a phone call to the clinic and after speaking to the volunteer coordinator, I had a gut feeling that the Matthews Free Medical Clinic is where I wanted to be. That gut feeling was confirmed after meeting the great staff and volunteers at the clinic and the rest is history!

“There are so many things that I loved about volunteering at the Matthews Free Medical Clinic. If I had to choose only one thing, it would be the people. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting the people that make up our community. Everyone that I have met has a unique story, and I had the pleasure of being part of it. Furthermore, the staff and volunteers at the Matthews Free Medical Clinic made it a great place to volunteer. I was surrounded with like-minded individuals who genuinely wanted to use their time and talents to help others and to better our community.”

Nam started a new job in finance this last week, and will no longer be able to volunteer with us here at the clinic on Mondays. We just wanted to say thank you so much, Nam, for all you have done here at the clinic over the years. You are such an integral part of the clinic, and you will be missed! We wish you all the best in your future endeavors.

It is because of volunteers like Nam that Matthews Free Medical Clinic is able to provide free, quality health care to low income, uninsured patients in Mecklenburg and Union Counties.

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